Ms. Greenwell,
I don't fully understand your point. Certainly BHS should review carefully its benefits for employees as should any institution but you seem to suggest that this is outside the scope of a School Board's job. I don't get it. I have two kids still in the district and I very much want a School Board that considers all sorts of options for teachers in light of major changes in the way public education is funded. If you don't think a well trained, well paid, and reasonably content teaching staff is related to the education of students, well, then, I wouldn't want you having anything to do with my kids district. As for the district plan itself: Patch was kind enough to link your blog of last spring in its story. There you will find a number of responses to your concerns. Are you able to address those responses in any responsible way or is this simply another opportunity to attack?

It probably makes more sense for Kwame Kilpatrick to run for mayor of Detroit again than for Jenny Greenwell to try to reimpose herself and irresponsibility on our community in running for a seat on the school board.

Jenny: You've run a "scorched earth" recall the board campaign full of errors and unsubstantiated allegations. I'm not interested in sitting on the board. I am interested in making sure your candidacy is unsuccessful. I believe you are dangerous to the children and the community. Your history in previous campaigns is disgraceful. I don't believe you have a focus on anything but being destructive to the district since your exit and I don't believe the needs of the students really matters to you. I'm sure you disagree but after the better part of the year reading your blogs and comments I believe the best thing I can do to take care of the needs of the students is to keep you off the board.

You say, “Some argue that the clinic will ‘save money.’ No proof was offerred at the study session.”

But you do agree that if it is TRUE that the clinic will save money, you would support it, right? Saving money IS an appropriate activity for the Board, right?

I don't live in this school district and don't know all the details but is this sort of service being offered to teachers in other school districts so that the district has some template that this is a benefit to the taxpayers and employees? Just what sorts of medical care will be provided? Mammograms? Treadmils? Weight Watcher meetings, strep throat testing? Did the district survey its teachers to determine whether they would use this service versus their own physicians with whom they would have an established physician - patient relationship? I hope they don't do this in my school district!

If our teachers get medical coverage as part of their paypackage than why do we feel need to pay them twice? I want my school taxes to benifit students. This idea does not.

Jenny: Your posts indicate again why you're tempermentally unqualified to serve on the school board: a poster asks you to answer a direct question and, instead, you go off on her. I don't remember you making similar comments when so many of the NONO /B2020 advocates posted under pseudonyms.

Neal Charnasty has only personal devious attack and no concrete contribution to the discussion. His remarks are frequently inappropriate.

Ms. Greenwell continues in attacking, refusing to answer questions, and then making personal attacks on people asking her questions. Again, does this display the temperment of someone you would want on your school board impacting your children and community. I urge people to read her many blogs and posts. They will serve to demonstrate this more than my words.

Let me try to get through one more time.

It has been asserted that this proposal will REDUCE the over-all cost to the district of providing health benefits to district employees. I am not certain of the details, but I suppose that this will occur by reducing health insurance and self-insured health costs by more than the cost of the clinic.

I don't know whether this is true or not. If over-all costs would not be reduced, I would be opposed to the plan also.

But if it CAN be determined that the district would SAVE MONEY by establishing the clinic, WOULD YOU SUPPORT THE PROPOSAL? Or are you simply opposed to ANYTHING the current school board does, whether it saves us money or not?

A candidate for the school board needs to answer this question!

My name is Mark Torres, I've been a resident of the district for over 17 years, I have a daughter who graduated from Andover, and I have no other relationship with the district whatsoever, other than as a resident and taxpayer.

Apparently Jenny Greenwell attended a BHSD study session discussing the proposed health clinic. She has expressed her opinion based on what she heard. Some information was not discussed? How many responders know any facts about this proposal? What has the district shared with the taxpayers on this issue? Were there surveys with the teachers or was this issue put in the new contract?
I sent the following email to the BHSD on Aug. 16. No response yet.
" Hello, I was reviewing the BHSD website, and I noticed that the August 2011 check register information was missing. Could you please include it on the website? Thank you.
Also, where can I find minutes of study sessions of the Board of Trustees? I wanted to read about the proposed health clinic issue. Apparently bids were received in February and opened in March. Community "partnership" committees were to discuss the issue? Did they? Are there minutes of those meetings?
Where can I review the bids submitted for the proposed "wellness clinic" or other similar wording of the health care proposal?
Should this be public information? I am under the impression that the issue may be voted on at the Aug. 23 Board meeting. I'd like more information before that date if possible.
Also, I read that new contracts were approved at a past meeting. Are those contracts available to the public to read? If yes, where?
I am new to the Bloomfield Schools as of 7/13/12. No children in school. Thank you."

Second comment: I moved and now can vote in the Bloomfield Hills School District and I will vote for Jenny Greenwell for the two year term on the school board this Nov. 6. I want someone who will study the issues and discuss the merits pro and con of those issues with fellow board members and the public. It sounds as though the study session was not thorough in the details of this proposal. Were all the members of the school board present at that meeting? Do they know all they should know? Was public comment permitted at the study session? If no, how can the public taxpayer weigh in on the issues? If anyone can provide a specific link concerning this issue from the school board, I would appreciate receiving those links.

Thank you ALL so much for posting comments to my blog! I am glad to be able to raise so much interest in school district business. Please continue to read The Patch and follow my blogs. I promise to help keep school business in front of the generous, intelligent taxpayers who have provided premium funding to our school district! I am very proud to be part of a community that supports public education. Thanks to all of you for paying attention to school issues. Please continue to do so! WE are the top-funded school district (of 550) in the state of Michigan. With proper attention to spending, we can be the top-ranked, academically, as well!!

Neal, I find most of your comments in this thread to be the one who is the "attacker" and your obvious dislike for her is so noted. Do you have anything to offer to the proposal of the health clinic? What do you know about the issue?
Howard, it is ..Marcia... While you were at the study session on the health clinic, did the board members DISCUSS the issue or did they just get a presentation by the "winning bidder"? When was the winning bidder chosen? By whom? Does your packet show the other bidders that were not chosen? Did the board members receive the "packet" at the meeting or did they have a chance to review it and study it BEFORE the meeting. I realize you may not know the answers...just asking.
Elizabeth, thank you for the links. I've been reading...not finished yet, but have not seen anything yet on the health clinic issue that helps me. Also, I know that email responses take time, and await the answer. Where would one pick up the packet that Howard has and you have mentioned?
All readers: If each person could add WHAT they know about this issue, it would make the reading more pleasant and informative. Jenny has mentioned a place/start up costs/ only open 24 hours a week..../for teachers only/ ...... Are there disagreements to those comments? Are there variations to those comments? IE: alternate sites/ other ways to fund alternatives/ possibly open to others in the future????? Hey, let's have a conversation on the ISSUE. Thanks.

Running a medical clinic is no small matter. They were not able to maintain the schools and they supposedly became run to such a degree that they need replacing and renovation so how can another facility not added to the cost? Now they want to run another business unrelated to teaching our students. The cost will be astromical. Just think they will not only need a physician or a nurse but other personel like maintenance people trained in keeping infections down etc, office pesonal of several different type to keep and maintain and update records. let
alone supplies and equipment. Has anyone priced an xray machine lately.
Also, what is the demographics of the facility? Will someone who is ill want to travel 15-20 miles to a clinic if they do not live in the district? I wouldn't.
If some sort of medical insurance is going to remain intact why would anyone want to change their doctor and go to a clinic instead of their doctor who they know and trust.
Lastly, many teachers have spouses that carry health insurance that could suppliment what needs to be reduced or paid out of pocket. Health insurance was not always a part of a job's benefits. So we all need to tighten the purse strings and do with a little less or pay personally.
V. Kulis

Dear Patch Community,

This proposal intrigues me. When I attended the bid opening I thought the cost of this service was quoted from around $500,000 and close to a million (I may be wrong, but this is my memory).

I'm sorry I was unable to attend the study session. Is there any kind of business case that forecasts a net savings to the District?

I hope there is a big net savings, otherwise this is an unneccesary distraction from the huge task of planning and managing the high school project. We all need to keep our eye on the priority; education. And that means assuring the high school transition is flawless.

Chris: You make good points. What it seems to me, but I don't know, is that this service would reduce the district's health care expenditures because we're partially self insured. If that's true it makes great sense. If it was an additional net expense on top of what our health care costs are I also would have trouble with it. I suspect the critics believe or want others to believe that's what is happening and that the district is being irresponsible. It seems the critics want to talk about the costs without considering the savings. That's like complaining about $1000 of insulation that will save you $2500 in utility costs over 5 years. What's more relevant: the $1000 cost or the $2500 savings? Which would you want someone managing your money to consider.

Again, you raise good points.

As a health care professional working in Michigan for many years, I want people to understand that opening a clinic in the present political climate is something that everybody involved in healthcare is trying to avoid. To open a clinic today means to subjected to a mountain of rules and regulations and is expensive. More clinics closed in last 3 years than opened, many clinics were taken over by hospitals. The bottom line is in the DETAILS of the plan, how much will it cost to BHS to run it, will there be savings etc. An independent public accountant should provide the community with a transparent un biased account. What Jenny Greenwall is focused on is simple, Mr. Charnasty, Jackson and others, "WHAT WILL ADVANCE THE SCHOLASTIC ACHIEVEMENTS OF OUR CHILDREN ?" Is a health clinic going to contribute to it? Will ALL BHS administrators and Board members benefit from the clinic? If the clinic will save money to BHS as proved by an un biased professional while providing healthplatinum clinic, I will support it. If it will create a financial burden in addition to already declared financial short comings by BHD than we all should be against it. BHD needs a "second opinion" to it's policies and decisions. So far ALL seven board members rubber stamped any and every decision. Mrs. Greenwell, who I know well, can provide an in depth discussion and better decision making which will bring greater community support to BHD.

"Dr" Barr: The question is whether this will save the district money or, in some way, add to the education of our students. Your question regarding whether board members of BHS administrators would benefit is another attempt to impugn the integrity of those people. Rationally, if this plan would save money by reducing health care costs/insurance expense of people receiving health care coverage it should apply only to those with that coverage. If administrators are covered this may save money on their health expenses. If board members aren't covered there would be no reason to include them. Your question is an attempt to impugn the integrity of these people. I would hope you know better.

I think the idea of a health clinic for staff is really silly for many reasons but what really bothers me is that they would consider using the old parks and rec building butting up to the new high school property for this. Parking is still going to be a big issue when the new high school is done. There are no promises that all upper grade students will be able to drive them selves to school and park, which is not just a luxuary when you consider off site after school sports and jobs,etc. To dedicate parking space for a clinic that could be better used by students attending the new high school would be wrong. IF, and that is a huge IF, it is economically sound (which I highly doubt) to run a health clinic for staff why would it not be housed in the Doyle center where they have recently spent multiple hundreds of thousands of dollars rehabing?

Wellness centers ARE being used by both school districts and large businesses with many employees. I am not surprised that the Bloomfield Hills School District is looking into it. It has translated into millions in savings for the Pasco County School District in Florida in just the first year, while improving employee health care and reducing the amount of time out of the classroom for the teachers. Watch this video... http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=1wYaReG49cg

BTW Jenny: I don't see any of your criticisms of posters such as Parentaxpayer since he/she is agreeing with you.

Keep blogging Jenny, this will keep your campaign mercifully short.

1. It is not clear who will enjoy this clinic. It is, to the best of my knowledge, not spelled out. It is one thing to provide health care to 300 or to 3000. Our experience with Bloomfield Township Senior House shows that non tax paying people joined the club. Health care clinic is a privilege given to a defined population. Who are these? Will permanent employees only enjoy the privilege or any, including temporaries, be part of the clinic? Are families included? 2. Health care costs are mounting and quality of care with certain health care plan is decreasing. The math is pretty simple: how much does it cost to provide health care presently to permanent employees? To temporaries? How much will the clinic cost? Is the clinic an addition to given medical insurance privileges or a separate, independent entity? Is it going to be an HMO type or US senator platinum health care plan? 2. The concern that Mrs. Grenwell, myself and the rest of the 20/20 folks was and still is to creat a highly respected student body with high scholastic achievements. I do not speak for Mrs. Greenwell. Yet, when the "unification" plan was discussed, all hundreds of residents involved focused on one issue: "make BHS the best is the country with International Academy as our model". Non of the participants had a personal, financial, philosophical interest in the discussion. See my comment on wellness plans below.

WELLNESS PLANS. Corporate Wellness plans are generally a failure: National Work site Health Promotion Survey Programs revealed 5 reasons for failure:. "lack of employee interest accounted for 63.5%; insufficient staff resources 50.1%; inadequate funds were responsible for 48.2%; failure to engage high-risk employees added another 48%; and, the inability to elicit the support of upper management resulted in 38% more of the reasons why work site wellness programs did not achieve their goals for wellness and health. Thus BHS should not create a Wellness program, rather a full health care clinic that replaces ALL current employee health care plans, OR abandon the idea of Health care clinic at BHD altogether. Knowing the difficulties and cost to establish such a clinic I feel that the idea for this clinic should be tabled indefinitely.

I believe all of us are in agreement that we don't believe the health care clinic should add to the health care expense of the district (Again, if spending $100 now to save $250 over 5 years that's not adding--you have to look at the whole picture).

Barr's comments about scholastic achievements of BHS don't comport with all the statements he made about taxes and that school age families lived in smaller houses and took advantage of older (perhaps wealthier) taxpayers. Barr is about taxes, anything else is a smokescreen. His statements after the election defaming the school board and district show his true intent. Do not believe his smoke and mirrors.

Mr. Charness, If you do not have anything to say just shut up. I demand respect from you. My name is DOCTOR Isaac Barr. I was a professor of Medicine in Wayne State and University of Michigan. I add my experience as a teacher of students who graduate from American High schools. Foreign graduates are frequently better prepared for college while BHS graduates required remedial classes-23%. I am not concerned about my children and grand children. All are well positioned. I am worried about Ken Jackson's two kids and the rest of BHS high school kids. Please understand that these kids are going to face fierce competition for universities and jobs. The Ivy universities class of 2015 already has 20% Chinese. And they deserve it. Almost all have a perfect SAT scores. You and Mr. Jackson do not read Mrs. Greenwell and myself well: We have one interest, create an efficient high school to secure the future of America, our kids. We are not here to fight with you, to be insulted by you, to misrepresent me or Mrs. Greenwell. We want a professional BHS board that is familiar with education. Here is the issue for you to ponder: what is more important: A longer school year or a Wellness PR clinic? International Academy has 41 more schooling days than BHS. Japan schools have 60 more schooling days than BHS. Japan schools are rated #4 and US schools, see PISA, are #64. Go home and cry for America the beautiful. I warned you and One Bloomfield United many times. This was always the one issue.

Guys, I gave up. You win! This is my last communication.

Dr. Barr, as opposed to your credentials, what is in question is your tactics of continually stringing together half-truths, innuendo and personal attacks. I have several times pointed out where you had made outright false statements and during the bond election you were even taken to task by targets of your irresponsible accusations and threatened with a lawsuit before you ceased your rantings. As a result, your credibility is zero with many of us. As an example, above you make the ridiculous statement that the IA attends school 41 more days than the rest of BHS. The number is actually closer to 15. My oldest daughter attended the IA and I have previously discussed the things that lead to its high performance, and while certainly more academic time doesn't hurt, the biggest contributor to the IA's overall level of performance is that it is a school where students self-select to be there. That means that comparing results of the student body at the IA to the rest of BHS or any other district, for that matter, is apples to oranges.

As it relates to the current topic of the District proposed wellness center, there is an interesting article in today's Detroit News that discusses the trend toward wellness programs and their tangible and intangible benefits. I encourage participants of this topic to read it.

http://www.detroitnews.com/article/20120820/LIFESTYLE03/208200331/Michigan-employers-embrace-wellness-programs?odyssey=tab|topnews|text|FRONTPAGE

J. Wagner

Please try to avoid bullying behaviors..it sets a bad example for our students. Such things as name-calling and personal insults are not appropriate, especially in print.
Thank you to all who read my blog, and to all who care enough about public education to follow the many issues and thank you to all of the generous taxpayers of the BHSD. To be honest, I think the greatest challenge to public education is just plain apathy. We need to CARE about the intellectual development of our students. I believe that many have unreached potential. The achievement gap is evidence of that belief. I have a very special blog in mind, and will try to prepare it today. I hope you will read it and enjoy it. Thanks for caring.

There is a significant difference between a "wellness facility" and a "medical clinic". A wellness facility is generally a resource for medical information in general and promotes good health and yes, many private companies do this to encourage good health habits. A medical clinic is something completely different...it offers patient intervention, administration of medicine and requires certified doctors and nurses
Certainly a medical clinic is a more significant and very costly proposal. It is my understanding that the BHSD is proposing a " medical clinic". Which in my opinion is a questionable, very questionable project for many reasons. This country is in the middle of potentially massive changes in health care administration and cost shifting and why anyone would venture in those waters with a medical clinic given this situation is lunacy.

I did not plan to write more E mails because of personal attacks on me. We want to discuss issues not personalities. I want to thank Jenny Greenwall for having the blog to bring this issues to public's attention. Why don't any of our Trustees have a blog on the Patch? Why do we have to count on Jenny Greenwell to communicate with taxpayers? There are questions which require answers. So far we did not see any discussion except for important comment by Jenny Greenwall and my comments on issues. When you have no answers, yes, you bully....Regarding the number of schooling days in IA I agree that presently it is 18 (172 in BHS and 190 in IA) days, but still the concept of lengthening school year was not discussed. Mind you: in Japan the school days are 243 which means that the Japanese kids are at school for 13 years, not 12 as in BHS.

Please don't confuse commentary on your positions as personal attacks. That's how you keep getting in these spots. You've created all of this, at some point you have to take responsibility for your words and actions. Then you can earn respect and people can consider your comments. It's not right for you, Dr Barr, to act as if you're a victim.

I find it telling when someone is called out for misrepresenting a piece of information and their response is to claim they are being bullied. The tactic of reporting false information was played out repeatedly by Dr. Barr and others during the high school bond campaign. In Dr. Barr's case it got to be so extreme that he brought the threat of a lawsuit upon himself. If you blog something that is intentionally misleading or outright incorrect, you yourself are responsible for being called out on it. You can prevent that from happening by refraining from that very behavior. Trying to sidestep that responsibility by claiming that you are being bullied only further erodes your credibility.

J. Wagner

Please make a point to read the article on the front page of today's Detroit News, entitled "Employers embrace wellness programs."
That's "programs," not private medical clinics in taxpayer-paid facilities.
The article talks about company-sponsored athletic teams, having a Weight-Watcher meeting "at work." I am sure that many employers provide help with general fitness, diet, smoking cessation and perhaps even addiction recovery. Such "wellness coaching" is not what's on the BHSD agenda. The BHSD is considering a $500,000+ medical clinic, open 24 hours a week, to provide basic health services for employees.
The question, as I see it, is: Do we want to spend tax
dollars intended for the education of our K-12 and special needs students on this clinic?
Will employees want to use it?
If you would prefer to send your response to my personal email, it's jdg5678@aol.com. Thanks! I'm interested in your opinion.

It seems clear that unless the district shows the wellness program or clinic will result in an expense savings on a long term basis (I'd like not to fall into the trap of looking at start up costs as recurring costs because they're not) we shouldn't do it. Beyond that I'm starting to think this discussion is fairly premature and we should talk about what positive steps we can take to enhance the education of our kids. This has become a side show with hurt feelings and we can't really resolve it because the information is incomplete. I am neither willing to say yes to this without all the facts and I think it's foolish to say no until we know. Again, if it's not positive let's leave it at home.

Excellent points, Mr. Charness. I sat through the first 90 minutes and it seemed to me that this may not be in the best interests of BHSD employees. A lot of attention was given to the compilation of "de-identified" medical information that is not typically available under HIPPA privacy protection.
I am not sure that this is a good idea. If I had AIDS, (or other controversial issue) I am not sure I would tell a clinic operated by my employer.
Teachers deserve privacy, and if their performance in the classroom is GOOD, shouldn't we let them deal with their health issues as they choose?
(As a side note, I prefer to refer to BHSD enrollees as "students." They are here to be educated, to get smart, to reach their intellectual potential. I have "kids," and when they were young, I took them camping and threw them birthday parties. Parents have "kids," but school districts have "students.")
I would love to see BHSD students be as smart, and as able, and as limitless as their talents and abilities allow. Am I dreaming? Can we do it? This would make me so proud and happy.
All of our students deserve our respect and our dedication to their fulfillment and success, in whatever they choose to do.
I like your comments, and agree with you. Thank you. You are correct: We are missing key information. I would like to know if our teachers WANT THIS.

Here's how I see it will work. The district will require the staff to use the new clinic for immunizations,annual tests,etc, to justify it's existence and so the place is not a ghost town. Since the teachers will be forced to go there they are going to demand the time off of their school day for their appointments, in their next contract negotiations. So you figure out of the teachers salary they will get 3 additional half days off a year, plus the cost of the sub to cover when they are gone, so there goes any potential heath care costs savings plus teachers out of the classroom. All that to justify someone in the Administration or School Boards wild idea so we can be the exemplary Bloomfield Hills district.

Parentaxpayer: I really agree with Ms. Greenwell on this one. If you believe in what you're saying have the courage to put your name behind it.

Regardless, it seems there's a lot of speculation in your comment and not much fact because no one has the facts yet. We're really jumping ahead here. You do seem to have an anitpathy towards the teachers who are the lifeblood of our kids' education. I don't think anyone wants the teachers or any district employees to take advantage but your comments assume bad results. Let's wait until we really have information.

I would also like to have more facts. There was no representative for the teachers at the Study session, which lasted about 4 hours. I stayed for 90 minutes, as I had a meeting to attend that evening. I wanted to ask a couple of questions, but was not offerred an opportunity. I would like to know if BHSD teachers and staff WANT this clinic. I would also like to know if it can be connected in any way to a benefit for our students. If it "saves money," that's swell, but if staff does not want it, I think we can find other ways to conserve precious funds.
Frankly, I'm not comfortable with the concept, and would like to KNOW more.
Thank you ALL for your attention to this matter. j

Ms. Greenwell I would ask why the difference in your reaction to Parentaxpayer today and Mdt48302 on August 18 in this same thread. Why the inconsistency?

I posted a NEW BLOG on Patch because it was LONG and could not fit in this post.
I received a copy of the packet distributed at the study session for the wellness center proposal. I give facts and my thoughts and opinions. Please read and respond with your thoughts. Thanks.
http://bloomfield-mi.patch.com/blog_posts/wellness-center-proposal-aug-23-7-pm-doyle-center

Note to ES: There is no "reply" button in your comment box.
When I saw the word "parent" in that particular screen name, it occured to me that confidentiality might be an issue. If "mt" had said that anonymity was REQUIRED, I would understand that. In certain cases, it is essential to protect one's identity. It's ok to just say so. Papers used to print letters signed "name withheld" to protect the writer. People have all kinds of issues and problems. I'm all for protecting the vulnerable among us.

Sorry I caused so much trouble, but it is true I am a parent in the district I would rather not take the cold shoulder or rude comments from parents who do not agree with me. I may also be a BHSD staff member who would rather not be forced to use this facility and do not want the retribution from those that are trying to create this mess.
I think the hair splitting going on here against Jenny is despicable. Granted she may not often deliver the message well, but the information she puts forward is valuable. How many of us would even have known about this clinic issue if she did not bring it forward? I do not think Jenny knows how to play well with others so maybe the sand box we know of as the BH school board is not the right place for her, but I do believe she truly cares about the students in our area and hope she stays involved. Now on the other hand, Marcia Robovitsky did a really nice job dissecting the packet of information on the clinic proposal. Despite staying on top of school issues for the past decade I have never heard her before. Maybe Marcia should be running for a spot on the school board. Marcia?

This comment is taken off the bloomfieldhillsforum.com site.....
The plan I knew of and the plan I VOTED on designated the old rec dept building land to be used for sports facilities for the new high school. The plan posted on the district website shows a baseball/softball field and a rectangular field which looks like a soccer field on the land that is/was the rec. dept. building. Right next to that is the tennis courts, which will need parking which would also be on the rec.dept. building land. You can see this on the the BHSD website at http://www.bloomfield.org/files/hs_transitionplan/bhs-120214.pdf .
I reluctantly voted yes on this plan knowing it was insufficient in that sports facilities would be crammed or even missing on this new site. Now the board wants to make it worse. I would then consider the bond election fradulent

You know, it makes more sense to use this land for parking than for a medical clinic that might not make a lot of economic (or other) impact. Parking is expected to be a problem, anyway, at this site. Traffic issues are still being discussed. I'll have to see if I can locate a site plan or some documents. The "schematic" developed by Fielding Nair is essentially a cartoon; not an architectural drawing. (Yes, we paid a lot of money, almost $1-million) for a cartoon!) A synonym for "schematic" is "cartoon." Ask Mr. Webster if you want the entire definition.
I wish our students the very best for this school year, and I hope that they are able to transition to a new school year without difficulty.